The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos State, has fixed January 20 for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arraign the Chairman of Honeywell Group, Chief Oba Otudeko, and a former First Bank Managing Director Stephen Onasanya for allegedly defrauding the bank of N12.3 billion.
Otudeko, a former Chairman of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Holdings, and Onasanya are to be arraigned alongside a former board member of Honeywell Plc, Soji Akintayo, and a firm, Anchorage Leisure Limited, said to be connected to Otudeko.
According to the EFCC, the four defendants allegedly committed the fraud in tranches of N5.2 billion, N6.2 billion, N6.150 billion, N1.5 billion, and N500 million, between 2013 and 2014 in Lagos.
The 13-count charge, which EFCC’s lawyer Bilikisu Buhari filed on January 16, also alleged that the defendants made and forged documents to deceive the bank.
Otudeko, Onasanya, Akintayo, and Anchorage are to be arraigned before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke.
One of the charges reads: “That you, Chief Oba Otudeko, Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, Soji Akintayo, and Anchorage Leisure Limited on or about December 11, 2013 in Lagos procured Honeywell Flour Mills Plc to retain N1.5 billion, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of proceeds of your unlawful activities to wit: obtaining by false pretense, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(c), 15 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
